Advantages of expanding Internet access for women in Cuba

In March 2016, on his visit to Cuba, then US President Obama said, speaking of the need for greater Internet access: ‘It also depends on the free and open exchange of ideas … [I]f you can’t access information online, if you cannot be exposed to different points of view, you will not reach your full potential, and over time, the youth will lose hope’. Catherine Powell references this speech in her blog post What Expanding Internet Access in Cuba Could Mean for Women. She notes that ‘Broadening access to the internet and other information and communication technology, such as mobile phones and social media, could be an important tool for women’s rights (and other human rights) in Cuba’. She explains four particular ways that increased access will improve women’s access to the workforce: first, expanding opportunities to work from home; second, improved communications with children and caregivers during working hours; third, an easier balance of work and home responsibilities with a stronger Internet economy easing some tasks such as shopping; and fourth, increased access to information and communication technologies will create job opportunities for women.